Americans oppose raising debt ceiling; GOP leading Democrats on key issues, according to new poll

As Congress edges toward a fight over the debt ceiling, a new Wall Street Journal/NBC poll says 44 percent of Americans are urging them to leave it alone.

The poll, released Friday, reported that nearly half of those asked are opposed to raising the limit on how much money the government can spend.

The country is set to reach the limit the amount of national debt that can be issued by the Treasury sometime in mid-October.

According to a story on Politico's website, Republicans are now leading Democrats on handling several key issues from the economy to foreign policy as the country moves toward the 2014 election cycle.

Republicans had a 7 percentage point lead over the Democrats on foreign policy, while Democrats kept the public's confidence on health care, though the level of that confidence has been declining over the past few years.

Only 27 percent of
Americans think the economy will get better during the next year, according to the poll. Two-thirds of those surveyed think the country is on the
wrong track.